After making their first World Series appearance and winning Baseball America’s Organization of the Year award in 2007, the Rockies plummeted to 74 wins as an encore. A month after their disappointing season ended, they traded their best player, Matt Holliday, a year before he became a free agent in a move that appeared to signal the beginning of a rebuilding process.

Colorado stumbled to an 18-28 start in 2009, costing manager Clint Hurdle his job as it appeared the club was headed for another disappointing season. But the Rockies suddenly reversed course, going 74-42 after bench coach Jim Tracy replaced Hurdle. They won a franchise-record 92 games and advanced to the playoffs for the third time in their history.

Just as homegrown players had sparked the World Series run two years earlier, they keyed the turnaround this time. Colorado was the only team to field an Opening Day lineup consisting solely of players it had originally signed and developed.

Following an injury-plague second season, Troy Tulowitzki reclaimed his place as one of baseball’s elite shortstops. Ubaldo Jimenez blossomed into a legitimate ace. Rookie Dexter Fowler, who ranked No. 1 on this list a year ago, injected speed and athleticism into the lineup after claiming the center-field job.

More talent is on the way. Lefthander Christian Friedrich, who surprisingly lasted 25 picks in the 2008 draft, ranked second in the minor leagues in strikeouts per nine innings (12.0) and may push for a big league audition by the end of 2010. Righthanders Jhoulys Chacin and Esmil Rogers made cameos in Colorado, providing further evidence that pitching shouldn’t be in short supply. Second baseman Eric Young Jr. earned a spot on the postseason roster with his speed and defensive versatility.

Rockies scouting director Bill Schmidt and his staff further stocked the system with a 2009 draft rated as the industry’s best by Baseball America. Lefthander Tyler Matzek slipped through the first 10 picks primarily because he had let it be known that he was looking for “unprecedented money,” and Schmidt pounced with the 11th overall choice. At the Aug. 17 signing deadline, Colorado was able to land Matzek for $3.9 million, the biggest bonus in franchise history but not an extraordinary sum for a player rated by some clubs as the second-best talent in the draft.

Schmidt said he didn’t think taking Matzek despite his questionable signability was a gamble, because the Rockies also owned the 32nd and 34th overall selections, compensation for the loss of free agent Brian Fuentes. They got two more talent values with those choices in a pair of college players with upside in outfielder Tim Wheeler and lefthander Rex Brothers.

In his decade on the job, Schmidt has proven to be conservative and productive in his drafting approach. His first draft, in 2000, produced nine big leaguers, including Garrett Atkins, Clint Barmes and Brad Hawpe, who still were playing important roles in Colorado last season.

The Rockies also continue to get a huge return on their modest investments in their Latin American program. Jimenez, a Dominican, has emerged the last two seasons as their No. 1 starter, while Franklin Morales, a Venezuelan, is their best lefty reliever. Four of their best minor league prospects were signed out of the Dominican Republic (catcher Wilin Rosario, shortstop Hector Gomez and Rogers) and Venezuela (Chacin).